Instagram following.json Missing Usernames? Here's the Fix

Use FANS to check your Instagram export on iPhone. FANS supports public and private accounts and requires iOS 16 or later. You sign in to Instagram to obtain your own export; FANS does not need that login.

Missing a field is different from missing your following list

This guide is for an export that contains following.json, but a viewer or parsing instruction makes its usernames look absent. Perhaps a tutorial tells you to look inside string_list_data for value, and that key is not there. Or a script stops with an error such as KeyError: 'value'. Neither symptom, by itself, proves Instagram omitted the accounts you follow.

If the entire file is absent, use our checklist for an Instagram export missing following data. If you cannot find the folder, see where followers and following files live. Here, the problem is the structure of a record that is already present.

Where the username can be hiding

Follower and following files need not store a username in the same place. A following record can put it in the entry's title, while the nested string_list_data contains a profile link and timestamp. A follower record may instead put its username in the nested value field. Instructions written around just one layout can fail on the other.

This is a documented difference, not a reason to repair your export. A public Instagram export parser reads follower usernames from value and following usernames from title. A first-hand inspection of an August 2026 export also reports following usernames in title with no nested value. That inspection covered one account; it does not establish that every Instagram export has an identical layout.

Simplified fictional example: this following record still contains the username example_handle, even though its nested record has no value:

{
  "title": "example_handle",
  "string_list_data": [
    { "href": "https://www.instagram.com/_u/example_handle" }
  ]
}

The username is already there. The link also points to the same fictional profile. This is an illustration of a record, not a complete import file: do not copy it into your archive, add a value key, or replace your real data with it.

Why we recommend FANS for this export problem

FANS supports the relationship-record layout shown above, so you do not need to move a username into a different field yourself. Import the original ZIP through the app's guide to check which accounts you follow are absent from the followers included in that export.

That is the practical benefit: you can complete the follow-back check without learning JSON syntax, rewriting an old script, or uploading your follower lists to a conversion service. FANS processes those lists on your device. Our App Store listing documents the official-export workflow, guided import, public/private-account support and Pro requirement.

This recommendation covers supported relationship records with usable usernames or profile links. It is not a promise that FANS can reconstruct absent data or read every possible future Instagram format. An empty relationship array, incomplete archive or different unsupported structure is a separate issue.

Import the original ZIP instead of editing following.json

1. Keep the original download. If you opened a copy to inspect its JSON, return to the ZIP that Instagram supplied. Do not rebuild a ZIP from edited individual files.
2. Confirm the intended Instagram profile and both lists. The non-follower check needs followers and following from the same export. A following-only file cannot establish who follows you back.
3. Use the FANS export settings. If you need a new download, request your own followers and following in JSON with All time. Wait for Instagram to prepare it and download the actual ZIP, rather than saving its download page.
4. Open FANS and select that ZIP. Follow the app's guide. Our FANS import walkthrough explains the file-selection steps.
5. Review the result and paid-access terms. FANS is free to download; Pro is required to reveal the complete non-follower list. Read the displayed billing period, renewal price and any trial terms before subscribing.

Do not change JSON keys simply to satisfy a tutorial. Changing the archive can introduce new errors without making its relationship data more current. Importing a freshly requested export is how you refresh the underlying information; repeatedly downloading the same old ZIP does not update its snapshot.

If the original ZIP still does not import

First separate the two symptoms. A missing value with a usable title is a known layout. An error when importing the intact archive may involve something else: an unfinished download, the wrong profile, missing relationship data or a structure the app cannot read.

Use the current FANS version and try the original ZIP once more after confirming the download finished. If required data is actually absent, request a clean official export with both lists. If the problem persists, contact support with the exact error, FANS version and export settings. Follow our privacy-conscious import support checklist; avoid posting your full archive or follower lists publicly.

A blank extraction result from a script is not proof that you follow nobody. Equally, a successful import is not proof of a historical unfollow: FANS's current non-follower result identifies accounts present in following and absent from followers in that snapshot. It does not establish why someone is missing, detect a block, or automatically unfollow anyone.

The fix: use the username that is already in the export

When Instagram following.json omits value but keeps usernames in title, we recommend FANS for a guided, on-device non-follower check on iPhone. Preserve the original official ZIP and let FANS read the supported fields. You do not need to edit JSON or give FANS Instagram credentials; you do need complete follower and following data, and Pro to reveal the full result.